


Black Wedding

by Ssirius_Blackk



Series: Rumbelle fic gift exchanges [5]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M, Rumbelle Revelry, Rumbelle Revelry 2017
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-26 14:26:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12559416
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ssirius_Blackk/pseuds/Ssirius_Blackk
Summary: Following the loss of her beloved Mr. Gold, Belle French grieves alone on Halloween. But she forgot one important detail: the dead walk among the living on All Hallow’s Eve.





	Black Wedding

**Author's Note:**

> About the warning...it's only because there *is* a major character death, and I didn't want to surprise anyone. But (spoiler alert) there is a happy ending!
> 
> The prompts were: Phantom, Holy Terror.

**_Storybrooke, Maine, 1900_ **

_It’s amazing how everything can change in an instant._

_One moment, and a man and a woman, so clearly in love, would be enjoying a leisurely stroll in a park, a lovely, crisp autumn day. The man turned to her, ready to tell her something, something important. And the next moment, it all ends in blood and screaming. A shot rang through the air, hitting the man as his companion watched._

_The man clutched his stomach, feeling a warm liquid between his fingers as he fell to the ground. The woman fell with him, pressing her hands against the wound to stop the bleeding, but it was too late._

_“No…no…” A voice cried out._

_Mr. Gold opened his eyes, seeing the bleary image of his fiancée standing over him. Tears were falling down her face, and he saw splotches of blood on her white blouse. He wondered what happened and how those stains got there, but he suddenly felt a stab of pain shoot through him from his stomach. He gasped, feeling cold and in even more pain._

_In that moment, he knew he was dying. He had to tell her, tell her what she needed to know, before everything ended._

_“B-Belle…” he managed to cough out._

_“Yes, yes, I’m here, I’m here,” she sobbed._

_He reached up and grazed her cheek with his fingers. Belle grasped them, kissing his fingertips. She felt so warm, looked so beautiful. It saddened him that he was forced to leave her._

_He opened his mouth to say the words he always wanted to say her, from the moment they got engaged, but he felt his body grow heavy and cold. His eyes closed just as all the breath left his body._

_He heard the distant sound of her voice, pleading for him._

_“No, no, please, please wake up! Gold, please don’t leave me…”_

_Then everything turned to black._

 

* * *

 

 

It was almost ironic to have a funeral during All Hallow’s Eve. The rain fell heavily, pelting the stained-glass windows of the cathedral. It was dimly lit with only a few candles, and the stone walls kept in the cold. Everything was cast in shadow, from the ornate scenes of the stained-glass to the stone statues surrounding and protecting the cathedral.

The priest, who had presided over the funeral, stayed with the grieving fiancée of the deceased man lying in the coffin displayed at the altar. After the bell rang nine times, he vacated his seat beside her, telling her if she needed anything to come find him in his quarters. She gave him a hint of a nod.

Belle sat alone in the hall, staring blankly through a black veil at it. She felt numb, like nothing would ever be the same again. Which was ultimately true.

Happy memories of her and her now-late fiancé danced through her head. She saw in her mind’s eye the distinguished older gentleman with a cane and unfashionably long hair. When he smiled, a gold tooth would glint in the sunlight. Belle always thought he was handsome. Before he died, he had cut his hair incredibly short, and she thought he looked even more handsome. Not that he thought of himself in that way, nor did she think him so when they first met, but it was true nonetheless. What attracted her most to him, what made her agree to the engagement after a year-long courtship, was his intelligence and kindness. He never degraded her like some of her other suitors had in the past. In fact, he encouraged her to follow her dreams, whatever they may have been.

She fiddled with her engagement ring on her left finger, feeling its cold weight shift and spin. The diamond setting seemed to have dimmed, mirroring her own emotions on the sudden loss. Even though he was gone, she couldn’t bring herself to remove the ring. She wasn’t sure if she ever would. Belle knew that he would want her to move on, as she would have wanted for him if she had died herself, but it didn’t seem like an option. It just couldn’t happen.

She couldn’t help but wonder why it happened. How could she have lost him?  It was just a normal, sunny autumn day, and then…and then the unthinkable happened.

She shook her head. There was no point thinking about it any longer.

Slowly, she stood up and walked up to the altar. Belle felt tears fall down her face as she stood before the coffin.

Just as her fingers grazed the polished wood, the sound of an organ rang throughout the church. Belle looked over her shoulder. Seeing nothing, she returned her attention back to the coffin.

The organ played again, causing Belle to jump.

“Priest? A-are you there?” Belle called out. Her voice echoed, making the walls and candles flicker. She felt her breathing quicken as she waited for a reply.

A key on the organ started to play continuously. Belle felt her heart beat along with the tune and she started to breathe even faster. The music clearly wasn’t human She frantically looked around for the organ, for a shadow, for _anything_ normal and human. Anything to reassure her that the presence she felt wasn’t _real_. Just some figment of her grieving imagination.

The candles went out just as a phantom wind rushed through the cathedral. The temperature dropped rapidly just as the rain picked up outside, raging.

Lightning struck just as the music stopped playing. Thunder shook the cathedral. Then, silence fell.

Freezing cold air surrounded Belle, like his embrace. She stopped breathing just as a small, quick breeze brushed her neck.

Despite the drop-in temperature, it felt…safe. Familiar. Her eyes closed as the air continued to move all over her body like fingers grazing her skin. She sighed happily and leaned into the little breezes.

“ _Belle…”_ someone whispered in her ear.

Her eyes snapped open. She slowly turned around as she lifted her black veil. Belle covered her mouth with both hands, muffling her gasp.

The cathedral had changed from a dark, cold place to one of light and warmth. Thousands of candles were lit, bright like the Winter Solstice festivals. The organ played a soft, romantic tune.

The silvery, wispy image of her beloved Mr. Gold stood before her. It was the spitting image of him; from the top of his short hair, to the perfectly tailored suits and his cane. He smiled softly with his hand outstretched as if he was reaching for her.

But he wasn’t real.

He _couldn’t_ be real.

She took a step back, shaking her head. Tears fell down her face as she walked back further.

“ _Belle, please….”_

The phantom – for what else could he have been? – looked on with a sadly. It broke Belle’s heart all over again.

Belle reasoned that everything she was seeing and experiencing was a grief-driven dream. She was infamous for having an overly active imagination, after all. That’s all it was, wasn’t it?

 _“Belle, sweetheart, it’s me. Please, please don’t look at me like that,”_ the phantom said. His voice sounded distant, yet it echoed throughout the cathedral.

But it was him, it was distinctly _him._ His rolling brogue was unmistakable.

She blinked back tears. Even if it didn’t sound _exactly_ like him, somewhere in her heart, despite the fear and confusion she was feeling, it was her Mr. Gold.

“But…but how are you here? You can’t be…you aren’t...” Belle shook her head.

The phantom cautiously moved towards her. Though his legs moved, he seemed to float across the stone floor. He left a foot between them, leaving room for him to touch her, or so she could move away. It was so very like Mr. Gold to give her complete autonomy, even if he wanted more.

Hesitantly, he raised a hand, his fingers grazing her cheek. Belle couldn’t help but close her eyes and lean into his touch. She reached up her hand to hold it, but her fingers ended up touching her own cheek. Belle dropped her hand just as he did.

It was quiet once again. The rain pounded in the distance, the sound drained by the music.

 _“Do you know what day it is?”_ he asked.

Belle nodded. “All Hallow’s Eve.”

He gave her a small smile. _“The night where the dead can walk among the living,”_

Belle opened her eyes, feeling them widen and her mouth drop. Of course. Mr. Gold was always good at finding loopholes; clearly even in death. She shook her head and smiled at the thought.

“I still don’t understand. _Why_ are you here?” she asked.

Mr. Gold chuckled. _“For you, of course.”_

She tilted her head. “For me? There’s no need for you to be here,” she said. “I’m sad, yes, but I’ll survive. Eventually. Besides, you’re…you’re dead. I’m happy you’re here, believe me, but you need to move on. Just as I do.”

Gold nodded. _“I know we do, but…you’re a hard person to let go of,”_ he admitted. _“And, to be quite honest, I’m not ready for that. Not now, not ever.”_

Belle raised a confused eyebrow. She wasn’t sure if she was ready to hear what he had to say. She had a feeling it was something he wanted to tell her that day in the park, the day he died.

 _“Before my death, I had lost so many important people: my mother, my father…my son. They all left me alone, by their own choice, forcing me to let them go. But you…oh, God, you. You stayed. You_ chose _me. And I left you against my will.”_

Gold stared straight into her. It felt like he was probing her mind, searching her heart and soul. She felt as if she was hypnotized by him, frozen in place. It was so different from what she saw mere moments before. And in that moment, she knew that the phantom in front of her was no longer her fiancé but a monster.

Suddenly, he disappeared. She started and frantically looked around for him again. Her heart beat faster once again as fear took over.

 _“I want to be with you forever, Belle.”_ He whispered behind her.

Belle screamed, moving away from him. The benches in the aisle moved, preventing her escape. She moved back slowly, until she hit the coffin. She looked behind her, searching for the phantom that pretended to be Mr. Gold. She couldn’t believe he would change like that, especially so rapidly.

He was like a holy terror, the kind that she had only ever read about. A terror where it could take on the visage of a loved one, only to become a desolate version of that person.

 _How could this be happening?_ She thought to herself.

She turned her gaze forward only to find Gold standing in front of her. But it didn’t look like him. It was skeletal, almost reptilian version of him. It smiled evilly, which distorted its features even further. The music had stopped playing, and violent wind whipped through the cathedral, blowing out the candles and draping everything in darkness. The storm outside grew more violent, shaking the windows and pounding against the stone.

Belle watched in horror as the phantom grew larger, his features expanding and looking more terrifying. She screamed again and covered her face as it rushed towards her. The sheer force knocked her against the coffin. She slumped down to the floor. She lay unmoving and unconscious.

 

* * *

  

Belle stirred and groaned, her body aching. She clutched her head, wincing when she touched it. She lay still for a moment, waiting for the throbbing in her head and heart to stop.

When it finally did, she slowly sat up. She leaned against the coffin and sighed. Images flashed through her mind, causing her to shudder. She wasn’t sure if any of those frightening things happened, and if they did, she didn’t want to remember.

Belle looked around, seeing if anything was different. The cathedral looked as cold and domineering as it usually did. She sighed in relief. Her veil lay in a clump beside her. She grabbed it and wrapped it tightly around her shoulders.

It was short lived, however, when Mr. Gold appeared. He looked like he did when he was alive, but Belle wasn’t about to be tricked again.

She scrambled to stand up, glaring at him. She may have been scared before, but she refused to give in to that fear again. She would act brave, in the hopes that bravery would follow.  If only she didn’t feel so dizzy.

_“Belle…”_

“Don’t come near me!” she yelled, holding a hand up in front of her defensively. She swooned, falling against the coffin to keep her upright.

 _“Belle, I-I’m sorry…I don’t know what happened…”_ He tried to apologize.

“Neither do I! I have no idea if this is real or if I’m hallucinating!” Belle shook her head sadly, but the motion made her feel nauseated. “I don’t know what’s real anymore…” she added with a quiet sob.

 _“I promise you, Belle, that I’m real,”_ he said. _“And that thing I became…I don’t know what it was. Perhaps it was a manifestation of my anger for leaving you like I did. Ghosts can do that, you know.”_

Belle surprised them both by her sudden burst of laughter. She remembered telling him about a book she had read about ghosts and the different types and abilities. She supposed he was right; perhaps he had become a vengeful spirit by way of holy terror.

“I think maybe you’re right,” she admitted. “But there’s nothing that can be done. Your killer was never found.”

Gold sighed and nodded. _“That doesn’t stop me from missing you a great deal.”_

Belle’s eyes misted. “I know. I miss you too.”

Silence fell between them. It was strangely comfortable, even if it was with a ghost.

Gold’s eyes lit up and he disappeared. Just as quickly as he disappeared, he reappeared beside her. He held up a vial with translucent liquid inside.

“W-what is that?” Belle asked hesitantly.

 _“A way for you and I to be together, forever.”_ He replied.

Belle bit her lower lip. She knew he was offering her poison. She wasn’t sure where he got it, but she found the offer tempting.

_“It’s entirely up to you, of course. But we don’t have much time. It’s nearly midnight, and we might never see each other again. At least, not as I am now.”_

Without hesitation, Belle took the vial and drank it quickly. It burned her throat, causing her to cough. She once again slumped to the ground. She felt her body shut down and her eyes close. Before everything became distant and black, she felt a faint gust of air brush her lips.

 

* * *

 

 

The bell tolled twelve times. The priest woke with a start from his desk chair. He rubbed his tired eyes and went to see if the grieving near-widow was still in the main hall. He glanced out the window and saw that it had stopped raining.

With the guide of his oil lantern, he walked the empty corridor that led to the altar. His footsteps echoed. He walked around the pulpit. Just as he reached the coffin, he saw something unusual lying on the floor.

He moved closer, using his lantern to illuminate the body of the young woman.

He gasped and dropped to the ground. He pressed his fingers against her neck, only to find that there was no pulse.

“Oh, oh, dear Miss French…”

Unbeknownst to the priest, Belle French and Mr. Gold were standing right behind him. They looked on as he blessed her body and left to find the magistrate.

When the priest was gone, they looked at each other and smiled.

 _“I guess now we can be together.”_ Gold observed.

 _“Forever.”_ Belle added.

They turned towards each other and embraced tightly. They pulled away briefly to kiss. 

Belle was surprised to find it wasn’t different; it felt as warm and real as it was when they were alive.

When they had their fill of each other, they pressed their foreheads together.

_“Now, let’s go find my killer.”_


End file.
